HILLS, Richard Benjamin
| Service Number: | 949 |
|---|---|
| Enlisted: | 2 March 1917 |
| Last Rank: | Sapper |
| Last Unit: | 12th Field Company Engineers |
| Born: | Holmesville, West Wallsend. New South Wales, Australia, 2 July 1900 |
| Home Town: | Woollahra, Woollahra, New South Wales |
| Schooling: | Bondi Superior Public School and Sydney Technical High School, New South Wales, Australia |
| Occupation: | Cadet Journalist |
| Died: | Killed in Action, Belgium, 7 February 1918, aged 17 years |
| Cemetery: |
No known grave - "Known Unto God" The Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial (Panel 7), Belgium, Menin Gate Memorial, Ypres, Flanders, Belgium |
| Memorials: | Australian War Memorial Roll of Honour, Menin Gate Memorial (Commonwealth Memorial to the Missing of the Ypres Salient), Sydney Technical High School WW1 Roll Of Honour |
World War 1 Service
| 2 Mar 1917: | Enlisted AIF WW1, Sapper, 949 | |
|---|---|---|
| 14 Jun 1917: | Involvement Private, 949, 1st ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, --- :embarkation_roll: roll_number: '3' embarkation_place: Sydney embarkation_ship: HMAT Hororata embarkation_ship_number: A20 public_note: '' | |
| 14 Jun 1917: | Embarked Private, 949, 1st ANZAC Cyclist Battalion, HMAT Hororata, Sydney | |
| 1 Sep 1917: | Transferred AIF WW1, Sapper, 12th Field Company Engineers | |
| 7 Feb 1918: | Involvement Sapper, 949, 12th Field Company Engineers, --- :awm_ww1_roll_of_honour_import: awm_service_number: 949 awm_unit: 12th Field Company, Australian Engineers awm_rank: Sapper awm_died_date: 1918-02-07 |
Help us honour Richard Benjamin Hills's service by contributing information, stories, and images so that they can be preserved for future generations.
Add my storyBiography contributed by Evan Evans
From Gary Mitchell
Memorialised at West Wallsend Cemetery on parents grave.
Sapper Richard (Dick) Benjamin Hills, 12th Australian Field Company Engineers (Reg No-949), cadet journalist (The Farmer and Settler, Sydney, N.S.W.), from 193 Edgecliffe Road, Woollahra, New South Wales, was Killed in action at Zillebeke, near Ypres, Belgium, age 17 years, 7 months.
Born at Holmesville, New South Wales on the 2nd July 1900 to William (died 24.1.1906, age 57 William-Hills of Holmesville, N.S.W.) and Harriett Elizabeth Hills nee Wright (died 29.5.1941, age 86) of 193 Edgecliff Road, Woollahra, New South Wales), Dick enlisted March 1917 with the 1st Anzac Cyclist Battalion, 12th Reinforcements, stated age, 18 years 4 months, actual age, 16 years, 8 months! at Sydney, N.S.W.
KIA (reported wounded by shell fragments and died 2 hours later at an Advanced Dressing Station. Cross placed at gravesite).
Another member of the " F. and S". Staff KIA.
Mr. Hills’s name has been inscribed on The Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial (Panel 7), Belgium.
Also inscribed on the Waverley Soldiers' War Memorial, Sydney Technical High School WW1 Roll of Honour and the Holmesville Community WW1 Honour Roll (inscribed as R. R. HILL, not designated as KIA).
A beautiful Memorial Plaque has been placed at the gravesite of Dick’s parents to honour the supreme sacrifice of their son during The Great War. GENERAL OLD SECTION 1. R. 13.
Contact with descendants would be greatly appreciated.
Lest We Forget.
Biography contributed by Sydney Technical High School
Richard Benjamin Hills was born on the 2nd of July 1900 to Mrs Harriet Hills and Mr William Hills. As a child Richard lived at 193 Edgecliff Road, Woollahra, Sydney, New South Wales. However, his dad passed away on the 24th of January 1906. He attended Bondi Superior Public School for his primary education, and Sydney Technical High school for his secondary school education. On the 2nd of March 1917 he enlisted with the 1st Anzac Cyclist Battalion, 12th reinforcement, with his stated age being 18 years and 4 months, but his actual age being 16 years and 8 months. He worked in the unit as a cadet journalist, meaning he reported routine events for the unit. Richard then was transferred to the 12th Field Company Engineers, as a sapper.
The 12th Field Company Engineers undertook a broad range of tasks. This included, preparation and supervision of the construction of defensive and gun positions, excavation of trenches and dugouts, erection of wire and other obstacles, preparation of command posts, signalling and water supply, field engineering, road railway and bridge construction, and route maintenance. The engineers also undertook obstacle breaching and crossing. For instance, in the lead up to the attack at Mont St Quentin the Engineers were required to carry out two river crossing and bridging operations. Richard Benjamin Hills spent all his time till death at this unit. Sorrowfully, Richard was working with a night party repairing trenches at Zillebeke, near Ypres, Belgium, on 7th of February 1918, where he was wounded by a shell fragment. He died two hours later in an Advanced Dressing Station.
After Richard Benjamin Hills’ death. He was buried in a small cemetery at Fusiliers Wood near Klein Zillebeke, Belgium. was buried in a small cemetery at Fusiliers Wood near Klein Zillebeke, Belgium. After the war, Richard’s body couldn’t be located, as a result, he was commemorated on the Ypres (Menin Gate) Memorial, in Belgium. Richard’s mother later wrote that he was 17 years 7 months of age at the time of his death. Richard’s cousins, Lieutenant David Henry Avard, MC, and Private Ernest Joseph Wright, also died in the war. With his cenotaph in West Wallsend, Lake Macquarie City, New South Wales, Australia.
Endnotes
- Virtual wall memorial Australia - Richard Benjamin Hills
- Google Drive - Richard Benjamin Hills
- Record Search NNA - Richard Benjamin Hills
- Find A Grave - Richard Benjamin Hills
Bibliography
https://vwma.org.au/explore/people/186760
https://www.cwgc.org/find-records/find-war-dead/casualty-details/924224/richard-benjamin-hills/
https://www.aif.adfa.edu.au/showPerson?pid=138145
https://www.findagrave.com/memorial/49764710/richard-benjamin-hills
https://vwma.org.au/explore/units/185#:~:text=They%20undertook%20a%20broad%20range,railway%20and%20bridge%20construction%20and
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